Director at lobby group, Action Society, Ian Cameron, has laid a charge of Crimen Injuria and assault against Police Minister Bheki Cele and police officers at the Gugulethu Police Station on the Cape Flats.
Cameron alleges that he was manhandled by at least four police officers who escorted him out of a crime engagement meeting in Gugulethu on Tuesday. This is after a verbal altercation with Cele.
Cameron was kicked out of a consultative stakeholder engagement that was meant to address the high crime rate in the area. During the meeting on Tuesday in Gugulethu, Cameron accused Cele of failing on his constitutional duties and later interrupted his speech as nonsense.
Cele did not take kindly to this, instructing Cameron to shut up.
“I sat down and I listened to many things he said, I respected him and allowed him to speak, but he can’t listen, that’s the kind of behaviour, the kind of rotten mentality to believe that there are super humans.”
Ian Cameron lays charges against Minister Cele:
On Thursday, Cameron moved ahead with his plans to open a criminal case against Cele and his police officers.
“It’s important to remember that these cases aren’t simply directed at the Minister of Police Bheki Cele on his own but it also includes those members that removed me from the building on Tuesday. Interestingly enough until this day I don’t know the official reason for me to be removed, there was no official arrest outside, and I was never read any form of rights, the other important part is I still don’t know who gave orders to remove me.”
Cameron says he will also lay a complaint with the Public Protector and the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) indicating that Cele may have over-reached his powers as minister.
He claims he was robust to the Minister and represented the frustrations of the many citizens facing a high level of crime.
“But it’s because of a very dangerous precedent that was set on Tuesday, that if you challenge a certain political elite or authority then you get forcefully removed, I did not speak on behalf of Ian Cameron on Tuesday, I spoke on behalf of 67 people that were murdered yesterday, 67 people that were murdered today and 67 people that would be murdered tomorrow in South Africa.”
Cele’s office said it will not comment on the nature of charges that were laid.
Cameron says Minister Cele’s behaviour shows the kind of leadership that SA is dealing with when it comes to police:
